ostrom



No. 608,370. Patented Aug. 2, i898. F. w; osrnom.

SEPARATOR FOR BUTTONHOLE SEWING MACHINES.

(Application filed Aug. 12, 1897.)

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SEPARATOB FOR BUTTUNHOLE SEWING MACHINES Patented Aug. 2, I898.

(Application filed. Aug. 12, 1897/) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

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FREELAND W. OSTROM, OF BRIDGEPORT,CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE "WHEELER & WILSON MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

SEPARATOR FOR BUTTONHOLE-SEWING MACHINES.-

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters iatent No. 608,370, dated August 2, 1898. i

' Application filed August 12, 1897. Serial No. 647,975. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern: 7

Be it known that I, FREELAND WV. OS'lROM,

a citizen of the United States, residing at Bridgeport, in the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Separators for Buttonhole-Sewing Machines, of which the following is a specification. I

This invention relates to buttonhole-sewing machines, and to illustrate its application I have embodied in it so much of the well-known Wheeler & Wilson automatic bottonhole-sewing machine (see Patent No. 439,680, dated November 4:, 1890) as is necessary to show its operative relationship.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide a buttonhole-sewing machine with a separator which will automatically retain its proper relationship with respect to the buttonhole-slit to be overseamed no matter what may be the cycle of feed movement or the extent or variability of the vibratory movements of the cloth-holding clamp.

Another object of my invention is to provide means for automatically holding the separator in a position below the under surface of the material while the operator is'clamping the material in position to be overseamed and while the machine is operated to bar one end and overseam a small portion of the two sides of the buttonhole.

In a buttonhole-sewing machine employing a cloth-holding clamp having a cycle of feed movement automatically controlled the separator must be so constructed that it will effeet the desired alinement of separator and buttonhole-slit under all of the varied conditions of position and vibration of the material necessary to the overseaming and barring of the buttonhole, and its every movement at right angles to the length of the buttonhole must be substantially the same as that of the material.

To use myinvention in connection with the well-known Wheeler 85 Wilson buttonholesewing machine, wherein the overseamstitches are formed by vibrating the material instead of vibratingtheneedle and wherein there is employed a cloth-holding clamp automatically controlled for the cycle of feed movement necessary to the overseaming of the buttonhole, the separator. must partake of the vibratory movement of the material for the making of the edge and depth stitches, for the overseam-stitches, and also of the movements transverse to the lengthwise feed movements necessary for the overseaming of first one side and then the opposite side of the buttonhole.

If my invention is used in connection with a buttonhole-sewing machine wherein the overseam-stitehes are formed by vibrating the needle and wherein there is employed a cloth-holding clamp having a cycle of feed movement automatically controlled for the overseaming and barring of the buttonhole, the movements of the separator transverse to the buttonhole-slit will be the same as the movements of the material to change the overseaming from the first to the second side of the buttonhole; A separator which must maintain substantially a given alinement with respect to a buttonhole-slit which is fed out of a right line for the automatic overseaming of the two sides of a buttonhole must be one which synchronously coacts with the movements of the material transverse to its lengthwise feed movement; and to this end I have provided a separator, which is a part of the cloth-actuating mechanism, located, timed, and controlled so that it eifects the desired functions claimed.

The particular features comprising my invention will be hereinafter described, and specified in the claims.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of my invention, showing in outline so much of the throatplate illustrated and described in my United States Patent No. 367,315, dated July 26, 1887, as is necessary to illustrate its application and operation. Fig. 2 is a like view of my invention, showing in outline so much of the wellknown Wheeler dz W'ilson buttonhole-sewing machine as is necessary to illustrate their operative combination. Fig. 3 is a perspective View in detail of my invention; Fig. A is an under side view of the back slide-plate, show-- ing the adj ustabl-y-attached separator. Figs. 5 and 5 show the adjustable separator-depressor and its holding-nut, the same parts being shown in the dotted lines in Fig. 2. Fig. (i is a perspective view showing a modilied form of construction.

Referring to the drawings, the cloth-plate A, the throat-plate (t, the hook-shaft crank a, the link a", the shaft-flange a, the main shaft 1 the under member of the cloth-holding clamp O, the back slide-plate C", and the slideframe ways G O are parts common to the \Vheeler & \Vilson commercial buttonhole-sewing machine, with the exception that the tlnroat-plate a is provided with a slot 0" to permit the action of the separator, and the back slide-plate O is changed sufficiently to illustrate one form of application of my in vent-ion to the well-known \Vheeler d; \Vheeler buttonhole-sewing machine. Each of these modifications will be hereinafter more fully described.

Referring to Fig. l, the slide-frame D, the lever D, the slide D, the link I), and the pattern cam-shaft D are parts common to the buttonhole-sewing machine to which I have applied my invention.

Referring more particularly to Fig. 3, E is a rook-lever adj ustably secured to the bracket E through the rockdever hanger h and screws h 71 The rock-lever hanger Z) is constructed of thin sheet metal and located close up under the bracket E, and the portion containing the fulcrum-pin 7) is shown in Figs. 1 and 23. The bracket F is secured to the front end of the slide-frame D by the screws h it. (See Fig. 1.) The forward end of the rock-lever lt is formed with an upwardlyextending separator-blade c, which when in operative relationship with..the lmttonhole-slit passes up through the slot 6 in the throat-plate a, as shown in Figs. 1, 2, and (5, the opposite end of the rock-lever E being controlled to hold the separator-blade e in its elevated or operative position with relation to the buttonholeslit by the spring 0. (Shown partially in full lines in Figs. 1 and 3.) The reverse movement of the rock-lever E, and consequently the separator-blade c, is controlled by the cam F, mounted upon the pattern cam-shaft D acting upon a lever F, suitably fulcrumed to the frame of the machine by the fulcrum-pin It and collar 7L4, its op posite end acting upon the rock-lever E to depress the separator-blade 0 whenever the lever F is in operative relationship with the cam F.

The pattern cam-shaft D, which carries the cam F, has one revolution for each cycle of feed movement of the cloth-holding clamp, and the formation of the cam F is such that its cam portion is in operative relationship with the lever F once for each cycle of feed movement of the cloth-holding clamp. Thus it will be understood that the normal or operative position of the separator-blade e is the position controlled by the spring a, (the position shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3,) and that the depressed position of the separator-blade c is the position controlled by the cam F.

Adj ustably securin g the rock-lever E to the bracket E is not an essential feature of my invention; but it avoids the necessity of an accurate constructive alinement of the separator-blade c with the l )uttonhole-slit.

The operation of the separator-blade c relatively to the overseaming of a buttonhole is as follows: Supposing the overseaming of the buttonhole to be commenced with the barring of the first end of the buttonhole, the separator 6 would be under the domination of the cam F, and consequently in its depressed position. The material to be operated upon, containing the usual buttonhole-slit, is placed in the clamp with the slit in the same vertical plane with the separator c, and the machine is set in motion. First, the barring-stitches comprising the one end of the buttonhole will be made, when the material will be advanced to receive the side overseam-stitehes, and as soon after as the material has been advanced sufficiently to bring the separator-blade into vertical alinement with the buttonhole-slit the cam F will permit the spring 6 to elevate the separator-blade a up throughthe slot 0 in the throat plate a and up through the buttonholeslit. This relation of separator-blade and buttouhole-slit will continue until the completion of the overseaming of the first side of the buttonhole and the barring of the opposite end and until the overseaming of the second side of the buttonhole is nearly completed, or until the material has been fed with respect to its lengthwise movement to the position occupied when the separator-blade entered the buttonhole-slit. Atsuch time the cam F will, through motion imparted to the lever F and rock-lever E, cause the depression of the separatorblade below the under surface of the material, where it will be held until the material for the succeeding buttonhole is by the feed movement advanced sufficiently to again bring the separator-blade int-o vertical alinement with the buttonhole-slit.

From the foregoing explanation of the relative action of the separatorblade it will be understood that the separator must remain stationary with respect to the lengthwise feed of the material, but that it must partake of the vibratory movements of the material and of the movements necessary to present the material for the overseaming of first one side and then the opposite side of the buttonhole and that the cam portion of the cam F is of suflicient length to effect the depression of the separator-blade during all the time that the blade is not required to be in the button hole-slit.

\Vhen this invention is used in connection with a buttonhole-sewingmachine employing an automatic cutting device substantially such as is illustrated by my Patent No. 11.39580, dated November 41;, 1890, arranged. and timed to cut the buttonhole-slit in advance of the over-seaming of the lmttonhole, the construction and operation of the parts comprising the separator mechanism remains the same. In such instance the operator would not be obliged to register the buttonhole-slit in a vertical plane with the separator-blade, for the reason that the buttonhole-slit would be automatically cut in the material in position to receive the separator-blade ass-soon as the feed of the material had positioned the buttonhole-slit within the field of operation of the separator-blade. I

In Figs. 2, 4, 5, and 5Ihave showna modified application of my invention which in detail differs from the application first recited,but retains the elements of construction essential to its practical operation. To illustrate this modified form of construction and application, I have shown so much of the wellknown Wheeler Wilson commercial buttonhole-sewing machine as is necessary for an operative combination.

Mounted operatively in the cloth-plate A (see Fig. 2) is the usual back slide-plate C and the throat-plate a, both common to the Wheeler & Wilson buttonhole-sewing machine employing an automatic buttonholecutting device. The throat-plate a is provided with a slot 6" for. the reception of the separator-blade e, as is illustrated in Fig. 1. To the under side of the back slide-plate'O, by asuitable clamp-plate, as'g, (see Fig. 4,) is adj ustably secured the spring-lever 9, formed with a separator-blade e at its forward end, (see Fig. 2,) the same as is shown by c, Fig. 1, and formed in the spring-lever g is an upwardly-projecting portion 9 which passes up through the slot 9 made in the back slideplate 0, where it is operated upon to effect the depression of the separator-blade e by a controller-plateg secured by the thumb-nut 9 (shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2 and in full lines in Fig. 5) to the under member 0 of the cloth-holding clamp. To give to the spring-lever g movements corresponding to the movements of the material at right angles to its lengthwise feed movement, I have suitably connected the back slide-plate C with the under member 0 of the cloth-holding clamp. To eifect this connection, I provide the back slide-plate with a stud g and to coact with this stud I suitably secure to the under side of the member C of the clothholding clamp thetwo guide-bars g ,which transmit to the back slide-plate (carrying the spring-lever g) movements corresponding to the movements given the material at right angles to its lengthwise feed movements. 7 The controller-plate g at its front end is bent or offset, as shown at 9 (see Fig. 5,) so that when it is suitably adjusted with relation to the offset portion g of the spring-lever 9 it will in its lengthwise movement corresponding to the lengthwise feed movement of the material eiiect the depression of the separator-blade 6 during such time as the separator-blade is not required to be in the buttonhole-slit. At all other times the separatorblade, through the flexible construction of the receive the barring-stitches g-l 6 is held in its elevated or normal position. v

' Referring to Figs. 1 and 3, the prime memher for controlling the depression of the separator-blade e is the rotating cam F, mounted upon the pattern cam-shaft D and the spring 6 isemployed to hold the separator-blade in its normal position when it is not under the domination of the cam F.

Referring to Fig. 2, the prime member for controlling the depression of the separatorblade is the traveling controller-plate 9 carried by the under member G of the clothholding clamp,and the resiliency of the springlever 9 holds the .separator in its normal position while the latter'is not under the domination of the controller-plate.

Fig. 6 illustrates a modified form of construction wherein the depression of the separator-blade e is controlled by the material. In the figure above referred to the separatorblade is shown as formed with an incline 7L5, which when acted upon by the feed movement of the material in the direction indicated by the arrow 15 will, when the buttonhole-slit has been fed backward sufficiently end of the buttonhole-slit in operative relationshi p with the inclined portion of the separator-blade, depress the blade and permitthe material to be advanced under the needle to When for any purpose the material is changed or repositioned in the clamp, the action of the material at the same time depresses the separator. While this manner of controlling the separator-blade is practical, I prefer to employ positively-controlled mechanical mechanisms,substantially as previously described.

The herein illustrated and described means forconstructing and operatively connecting my invention with buttonhole-sewing machines demonstrate that the details of conto the cloth-clamp, said separator partaking of the relative movement between the clothclamp and the stitch-forming mechanism in so far as such movement is required to change such relative position in stitching the two sides of the buttonhole.

Y i What I claim is a p 1. In a buttonhole-sewing machine, stitchforming mechanism; acloth-clamp; mechanism for changing the relative position of the cloth-clamp and the stitch-forming mechanism; and a throat-plate; combined with a with the line of feed movement, and vertically movable relatively to the cloth-clamp; said separator partaking of the relative movement between the cloth-clamp and the stitch-= separator offset from the needle, parallel 

